Arts and Crafts…and a GIVEAWAY!…

by ciriliarose on August 28, 2009

Today is an exciting day for me! As you’ll read in KnitBits #307, Booklet #290 Vintage™: Arts and Crafts is my very first complete collection. When we planned the fall collection, we talked about the need for a book of designs for young, preteens and yes, “tweens,” a cutesy word for a really underserved demographic in the knitting world.

Since I was the closest thing to a tween on staff, the task fell up on me to design for this age group. Knowing that some tweens grow faster than others, we decided to include sizes that go all the way up to a ladies’ large. The lovely model wearing Miroux is my size (5’8″, around 34B):

I confess, I was a bit nervous designing for tweens. I spent hours looking around websites, trying to get a feel for what that age group wants to wear. I remember being insanely particular which probably drove my mother crazy. As long as I was WARM, it didn’t matter what color or brand or whatever I was wearing…I, of course, felt differently!

One lucky day, Mary, one of our sample knitters, stopped by with her beautiful daughters and their friends in tow. I seized the opportunity for a little market research and asked them to draw some sketches of the sort of things they would like to wear. I was delighted when they brought in their sketches–they were TOTALLY in line with what I’d been working on! Simple, earthy colors with touches of bright, stripes, blouse-y shapes, comfortable details like pockets, hoods and handwarmers, all tween approved =)

I had so much fun styling this photoshoot. I sourced some awesome jewelry made from recycled materials (the tweens also noted that they were way into being green, which thrilled me). The model above is wearing some necklaces made from recycled magazines and the models below are wearing pins made from soda cans!

ETA: OK, so it wasn’t as hard as I thought! Glad so many of you know the film (rent it if you don’t, it’s very crafty!!) I’ll pick a winner from ALL the comments. But enough about the patterns, it’s PRIZE TIME! Tell me in the comments what inspired the names for these patterns. Next week I’ll pick 1 lucky winner from the correct entries who will win these accessories , a copy of Booklet #290 Vintage: Arts and Crafts and Vintage yarn to knit Diorama!

I’m pretty sure they are all from the French film The Science of Sleep from a few years ago. What a great way to name the patterns. They look adorable and I would love to knit some up for the tweens in my life.

I have to admit that I googled a couple of the names together, and I came up with the Gael Garcia Bernal movie “The Science of Sleep” that I haven’t watched yet. I got it through Netflix and it just sat here for a few weeks last year despite my love for Gael and other movies this director has made. This reminds me I still want to see it!

I have to admit I had to look up the terms, but I found the same information Ponka did! They seem to be common to The Science of Sleep, which I have never heard of! I guess I’m too far away from the right age group!

Anyway, I love the patterns offered by Berroco offers and would love a chance to win this new booklet and the yarn too!

I haven’t seen this movie but is La Science des **Reves** (the Science of Sleep) correct? Directed by Micheal **Gondry**, **Stefano Miroux** is the main character and there is another character named Christine **Miroux**, according to the plot keywords list there is knitting (**tricoter**), and **parallel worlds & parallel time** his dreams I’m thinking. I think Golden is **Golden Artist Colors, Inc.** and the artist uses golden products. I am really stuck on random, diorama & synch but I guess I need to see the movie to get them.
I like these kind of contests.

Go Cirilia!!!! Congratulations. I hope you will do many many more booklets!

I’ve been meaning ot tell you how nice it was to talk to you at the Portland airport while we were waiting to board our plane. You were knitting a baby sweater out of Sox and I kept thinking the whole time…that color looks so familiar….when I got home, there was a skein of it sitting right there! I’d been wanting to make a pair of socks out of that very same color. I just hadn’t gotten around to it yet, but am now working on my second sock already.

All the Best to you. I’ll be going to my LYS, scouting for your booklet. :)

Can I play if I just copy off someone else’s paper? “The Science of Sleep” sounds worth seeing, but I wonder why they didn’t choose the literal translation of “La Science des Reves” which is “The Science of Dreams”? Nice book of Christmas presents, Cirilia–I must have a pop can pin!

you know i saw this movie when it came out (The Science of Sleep) and it wasn’t until I was looking it up that I remembered those names. The best thing about that movie was all the cool crafty set pieces that were used.

They are from ‘The Science of Dreams’! So excited this is a tween pattern booklet, my daughter is just entering the tween stage and its tough to find the right pattern for fit and style that she likes. Thanks!

Ooh, ooh, Science of Sleep. I love that movie! And I can see those soda-can pins forming in my mind’s eye as clearly as his surrealistic office dream formed new reality out of two dimensions. Great movie.

Great post about your design process and inspiration. Love the Science of Sleep as a choice for design names! I would love to win a copy for my daughter and other friends who are rapidly approaching the tween phase of life.

so everyone got the right answer in before I did, but I’ll enter anyway. Gael Garcia Bernal is so dreamy. And so is Vintage, which I’m using right now for a baby blanket. I love this booklet, and I’m no tween!

I tried googling a bunch of the pattern names, but it kept coming up with websites about this pattern book, not about the movie. I had never heard of “The Science of Sleep” before, but I have now read the entire Wikipedia page…it sounds interesting.

I really like Golden…I hope I would still be able to make it for myself, even though I’m not a tween or even a tween anymore!

I tried googling a bunch of the pattern names, but it kept coming up with websites about this pattern book, not about the movie. I had never heard of "The Science of Sleep" before, but I have now read the entire Wikipedia page…it sounds interesting.

I really like Golden…I hope I would still be able to make it for myself, even though I'm not a tween or even a tween anymore!;. All the best!!

Science of sleep is what everyone thinks. I’m not in to anything French but I am into knitting for “tweens” I love the designs. Most of what I knit for my granddaughters will be something they have seen one of their American icons wear. It’s always fun, interesting and heartwarming when I get pictures of them wearing what I’ve made.

hmmm, i am thinking of my least favorite classes … algebra and geometry! (of course my 17 year old loves them and is going into elec engineering…not from her mom that’s for sure!) love the new designs and your photoshoot looks very teen inspired! (and i love the recycled props!)

Great patterns too! Even though I’m pushing 30, I still like some “tween” clothes and always unabashedly wander over to the Juniors section at TJ Maxx. Grownups love hoods and earthy colors too! Thanks for including our sizes in the patterns. I really liked Diorama and Miroux.